Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli

Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli. YUM.

You know when you were little, you kinda had the weirdest tastes for food? At least that’s how my family’s childhood was.

Particularly my sister, Katie. She loved “pickles and nuts,” that marshmallow candy bar called “Rocky Road,” those terrifying beef-and-cheese sticks you get at the gas station, and Chinese takeout, “Beef and Broccoli.”

So strange.

While I just can’t come to terms with the beef-and-cheese-sticks, she may have been on to something with the Beef and Broccoli. If it’s been awhile since you’ve indulged in this tasteful dish, give it another go. And this time, instead of picking it up from your local Panda Express, dust off your Instant Pot and give this recipe a whirl.

Instant Pot Beef and Broccoli…

So. Dang. Good.

Flank steak is typically not a tender meat. It’s a little tough, which makes it a bit cheaper than other cuts of meat. But now you can have cheaper steak that’s also tender and full of flavor, because we’ve found the secret to cooking it…

The instant pot. Cooking flank steak in the instant pot is like WOW, what kind of soft, tender, flavorful meat is this??!!

While my mom and I were making this to photograph, my brother Andrew came in and tried it. (He always seems to be conveniently close by on food-blog days… 😉 ) He loved it. And let me tell you, he is a Panda Express connoisseur, so if he approves of this homemade version, you know we’re on to something.

Turn instant pot to saute and adjust to "less." Once hot, add 1/2 Tbsp. oil and heat. Add the broccoli and stir to coat in oil. Saute until broccoli begins to soften and turn a bright green color, about 5 minutes. Remove from instant pot and set aside.

Dice the onion and slice meat AGAINST the grain, into long, thin strips.

Turn off the instant pot and then turn back on to sauté. Adjust heat to "more" and add 1/2 Tbsp. oil. Once hot, add the onions and sauté until soft. Add meat and brown for 2-3 minutes, then add the coconut aminos, water, coconut sugar, and garlic cloves. Stir to combine. Top with shredded carrots and turn the instant pot off.

Turn it back on and secure the lid. Set it to "manual" for 10 minutes.

Once the 10 minutes is up, do a quick release by turning the vent to "venting." Once all steam has released, unlock the lid and remove. Keep instant pot on "keep warm."

Combine starch with cold water and stir to combine. Add to instant pot along with sesame oil, lime juice, sriracha sauce and broccoli. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Stir to combine and let sit for 5 minutes or so to thicken.

Serve over rice and top with green onions and sesame seeds if desired.

Notes

*We recognize 8 cups of broccoli is A LOT of broccoli! But we found that it cooks down quite a bit, and we liked this much in it because it absorbs the flavor of the sauce in a delicious way! If you don't want/have that much broccoli, reduce the amount to your preference!

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